The start of NFL Training Camp is always an exciting time. You’ve spent the month of July sorting through fantasy football player rankings, you’ve probably invested your time reading a bunch of fantasy football draft guides (gotta love that ours is free, amirite?), you’re tracking the fantasy football ADP risers and fallers and you’ve probably even been drafting already, whether it’s a fantasy football mock draft or a fantasy football best ball league. The NFL preseason is nearly upon us as the 2022 Hall of Fame Game between the Las Vegas Raiders and Jacksonville Jaguars, two teams who have a brand-new look to them, is right around the corner. Like I said – exciting times. But you always have to stay diligent when it comes to all the latest NFL news and NFL injury reports. Your home league draft is probably coming up soon and you don’t want to be that guy who drafts a player who is out for the season. We’re here to help you at Fantasy Alarm, so let’s get to it.

 

 

Denver Broncos Lose Tim Patrick for the Season with a Torn ACL

 

 

Big injuries are always a part of NFL training camp, but seeing a guy go down for the year in early August is always a real shame. Especially when you see a guy who everyone was starting to hype, go down and grab his knee after making a spectacular catch. Patrick had always seemed like the odd-man out as most everyone looked to Courtland Sutton and Jerry Jeudy as the two primary receiving targets, but he always seemed to pop in over the last two seasons, have a couple of good games and turn a few heads. The performances were never outlandish, but enough to rile up Fantasy Football Twitter to the point where he started popping up on people’s Top 10 Sleepers list. Not mine, but for some. Well, it’s a moot point now and Sutton and Jeudy remain the top two receiving targets on this roster. This does open the door for K.J. Hamler a little more, so when you’re looking for a potential upside play super-late in your drafts, you can consider him, but his snaps are still going to be limited as the No. 3 on the team.

Dalvin Cook Leaves Vikings Practice with Hand Injury

 

 

Let’s not all start panicking in the streets just yet. This injury seems very minor and Cook leaving practice was probably more precautionary than anything else. He tried to stay on the field, played one more snap and then walked off. With a new pass-heavy scheme being installed by Kevin O’Connell, Cook’s hands are going to be even more important as we expect to see him more active in the passing attack than we’ve seen before. It’s also worth noting that both of his back-ups are also dealing with injuries. Alexander Mattison suffered a finger injury yesterday and Kene Nwangwu is dealing with a “soft tissue, lower-leg injury. Again, this doesn’t sound like anything major, but one thing I was talking about when breaking down the Vikings offense on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio, was that rookie Ty Chandler was someone to put on your watch list because he seemed to profile as a better runner in this new power/gap blocking scheme the team is switching to. The depth in the backfield is strong so don’t go crazy here, but continue to monitor how things play out this summer. If Cook, Marrison and Nwangwu sit out practices, it opens the door for Chandler to see more work and stand out to the coaches.

 

 

Vikings TE Irv Smith Undergoes Thumb Surgery Tuesday

 

 

This came out of nowhere for many as the Vikings revealed that their big, wide-bodied tight end suffered a thumb injury in camp bad enough to require surgery. Head coach Kevin O’Connell didn’t have much to say on this, but he did tell the media that Smith has not been ruled out for Week 1. Without knowing any of the details, we are going to have to take O’Connell’s word for it, but it does knock Smith down my board a little bit. We saw how well O’Connell got Tyler Higbee involved in the offense back in Los Angeles, so there was hope that Smith would finally have an opportunity to break out. We’ll continue to monitor the situation, but no, Johnny Mundt, is not a guy I would even remotely look at in drafts as a potential replacement.

Deebo Samuel to Do “Whatever it Takes” to Win

 

 

I love comments like this. The contract talks between the 49ers and Deebo Samuel were unnerving a lot of fans and fantasy football players considering how great of a season we saw from the wideout in 2021. But Samuel was very vocal about not wanting to return to the “wide-back” role, citing the physical wear and tear and how it would likely limit his shelf-life as an impact player. Then all of a sudden, he agreed to his three-year, $75.1M extension and everything was fine. But dig deeper into that extension and you’ll find yourself with a number of incentive clauses for rushing. He gets a big bonus if he hits a certain number of rushing yards and he hits another bonus with a certain number of rushing touchdowns. Now I’m not saying they’re going to utilize him in exactly the same fashion as last year. A healthy Elijah Mitchell along with rookie Tyrion Davis-Price, an improving Trey Sermon and good ol’ reliable Jeffery Wilson should be able to handle the workload of running back rotation. But Kyle Shanahan loves his gimmicks and we will still see Deebo on jet sweeps and other gadget, misdirection plays. Should the backfield get banged up, well then Deebo is at least assured that he will be compensated handsomely should he be needed out of the backfield. So, let’s not run out and commend him for these rah-rah comments to the media. Deebo saying that he will do “whatever it takes to win,” should be qualified with a “because he’s getting paid.” Simple as that. I don’t hate him for it, but let’s not put this guy on a pedestal because of his championship goals. 

 

 

Is Elijah Moore the No. 1 Receiver for the New York Jets?

 

 

As always, there is a ton of beat writer hype and speculation you need to wade through when catching up on the daily training camp news. Moore had a decent showing last year, though injuries limited him to just 11 games. He seemed to develop a nice rapport with quarterback Zach Wilson and the Jets are hoping the two continue to develop together. Does that leave him as the No. 1 receiver? Not necessarily, but considering Corey Davis profiles mor as the team’s deep threat and rookie Garrett Wilson is going to need some time to learn the ropes, there is a strong chance that Moore does become the go-to guy for Wilson. Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic said that he believes Moore is “in line for a big year,” and while he is probably right, just how big of a year we are looking at still needs to be determined on the field. Moore’s ADP isn’t outlandish by any means, so don’t be afraid to take him. Just keep your expectations in check for a developing team that is learning the ropes together in the NFL.

Skyy Moore Suffers Hip Injury in Chiefs Camp

 

 

I don’t know what Fantasy Football Twitter is going to do without an outpouring of Moore highlights from camp, but it sounds like the rookie is going to miss at least a few days after limping off the field Tuesday with what the team is calling a hip issue. He’s still in my Top 10 Busts article and I don’t plan on removing him no matter what the masses say. I just don’t believe the rookie is ready to make an impact this season. We’ll monitor his health throughout training camp, but with JuJu Smith-Schuster, Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Mecole Hardman all on the roster, the rookie’s path to targets is not what you would call clear.

 

 

Texans Coach Lovie Smith Declares Pharaoh Brown as the Starting Tight End

 

 

I always say you have to sort through what is beat writer speculation and what comes from the coaches. In this case, you have to pay attention to everything the coach says. Beat writer Aaron Wilson quoted Smith as saying, “He's our starting tight end and he's a wide tight end. He can block, big body. You see him make catches every day. We'll have a big role for him.” While most only hear the part about “making catches,” I’m more hearing about him being a big blocker. Just because you’re the starting tight end doesn’t mean that you’re the pass-catching tight end, plain and simple. Will he maybe see a few passes come his way? Sure. But he’s going to be seeing a ton of snaps because he can block. The Texans are likely to use a lot of 2-TE sets to provide extra protection for Davis Mills and the guy released for route-running is still likely to be Brevin Jordan. Brown just doesn’t have the same athleticism. 

Houston Texans Add WR Chester Rogers for Depth

 

 

This isn’t exactly a move that turns heads, but given the fact that the Texans have Brandin Cooks, Nico Collins and then a whole lot of garbage behind them on the depth chart, anyone joining this receiving corps has a legitimate shot to make the team. Rogers has spent his first five years in the NFL buried on the depth chart, first in Indianapolis and then last year in Tennessee. He’s not a big guy and has player predominately out of the slot which is probably where he would be highlighted the most in this offense. However, with the scheme the Texans run, again, we’re expecting a lot of 2-TE sets which won’t leave much room for a third wideout. You can track his progress, but the only person likely to draft Rogers at all would be Colby Conway, so if you’re not in a league with him, expect to find Rogers on the waiver wire whether he makes this team or not.

 

 

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